The gun was discharged shortly before 6 p.m. Sunday inside a vehicle
traveling eastbound on Interstate-10, police said. The boy was riding in
the vehicle with his mother, uncle and grandmother, and had climbed
from the second row of seating to the third in order to stretch out and
rest, the relatives told police.

Police were told the boy reached into a rear storage area for a
blanket, but also found his uncle's gun, which he believed to be a toy.
While handling the weapon, the boy pulled the trigger, and the bullet
wounded his left index finger and lodged in his left thigh, police said.

Upon hearing the shot and the boy's cries, police said the mother
pulled from the center lane to stop on the left shoulder of the
interstate. The boy's grandmother stepped out of the vehicle, took the
gun, and threw it into the grass median, police said, before the family
took the boy to Slidell Memorial Hospital. Slidell police were summoned
there, but handed the case off to NOPD detectives once it was determined
the gun was fired within the boundaries of Orleans Parish.

Sam Caruso Jr., spokesman for Slidell Memorial Hospital, said the boy
was not admitted there, but was transferred to New Orleans' Children's
Hospital for treatment. Children's Hospital spokesman Brian Landry,
citing medical privacy laws, declined to comment on the boy's condition
or even confirm that he was, or remained, a patient there.

According to the preliminary police report, the mother who was
driving was not aware the gun was in the vehicle. The report said the
mother asked her brother why he had the weapon and he answered, "For
protection."

The NOPD has classified the incident as one of negligent injury, but said the report and investigation are not complete.

Metairie man accused of shooting dog that was caught copulating with his purebred pup, authorities say

Randall Schexnayder, 51, was booked Friday (May 30) with aggravated
cruelty to animals, said Col. John Fortunato, spokesman for the
department. The wounded dog, a 4-year-old Labrador-mix named Raider, is
expected to recover from two gunshot wounds to the muzzle and neck,
according to his owner, Jim Hanley, 43.

Hanley contacted the Sheriff's Office on Wednesday (May 28) after the
Raider escaped his Henican Place home when one of his children
inadvertently left the front door unlatched. The dog returned a short
time later without his collar and bleeding, according to a Sheriff's
Office incident report.

"He thought the dog had been hit by a vehicle," Fortunato said.

But a veterinarian determined Raider had been shot. One bullet
entered his muzzle and exited near his mouth. The other entered on the
left side of his neck but did not exit, the incident report said.

Hanley told deputies the culprit might have been another neighbor who
filed a report when Raider similarly escaped the house on March 10,
according the report said. The neighbor told authorities the dog had
attacked him.

But Hanley also recalled another conversation with different
neighbor. That neighbor, later identified as Schexnayder, caught Raider
mounting his purebred dog, according to Fortunato.

"He threatened, 'If I catch him again, we're going to have a
problem,'" said Fortunato, who did not know the breed of Schexnayder's
dog.

Deputies went to Schexnayder's residence, 3916 Cleveland Place in Metairie, on the Thursday night.

Schexnayder admitted shooting the dog, Fortunato said. He told the
deputies he ran off the dog the first time he caught it in his yard
attempting to mount his pet. When the dog returned, he admitted shooting
it twice with a .22-caliber pistol, an arrest report said.

Schexnayder turned over the gun as well as Raider's collar, according
to the report. He was booked into the Jefferson Parish Correctional
Center in Gretna and released on Friday on a $10,000 bond.

When reached by telephone on Tuesday (June 3), Schexnayder declined to comment on the advice of his attorney.

The shooting traumatized the family, according to Henley, including
his young children, who discovered the pools of blood and found Raider
lying in the grass.

If Raider was a nuisance, Hanley said he apologizes. But he disagreed with shooting the animal.

"The guy could have handled things differently. He could have called
animal control or contacted me. Instead, he grabbed a .22-caliber (gun)
and fired two shots," Hanley said.

Raider, who is named after the Archbishop Rummel High School Raiders,
is a pint-sized sweetheart, according to Hanley, and harmless.

The dog has since been released from the vet and is on the mend. "He
is gingerly walking around," Hanley said. "He's a little nervous, which
is not his personality at all."

Friends rallied around the family and started a fund to help pay
Raider's vet bills. The support has been heartwarming, Hanley said.

"We're not trying to make money. We're going to pay his bills and
anything extra will be donated to an animal rescue group," he said.

Man bites infant girl, beats woman in unprovoked attack, NOPD says

New Orleans police
have arrested a man accused of attacking a woman and biting her
5-month-old daughter inside a Central City home earlier this month.

Reginald Pye, 23, was booked Friday (May 30) on charges of second-degree cruelty to a juvenile and aggravated battery.

A woman told police she was attacked and beaten by Pye inside his
Franklin Court apartment on May 19, before he began biting the little
girl, a detective wrote in an arrest warrant.

Pye was upset over a quarrel with his boyfriend, the woman said, so
she decided to spend the night at his home to console him, the arrest
report says. The woman told police she woke the middle of the night and
heard Pye "asking God to help him."

He began breaking items in the house and assaulting her with them,
the woman told police, pulling her by her hair through the apartment
while biting and beating her.

The woman finally broke free and ran outside to scream for help, she
said, but Pye then attacked the infant, the report says. He bit the girl
several times, police said.

Pye fled the apartment and got help from a neighbor.

The woman suffered "multiple injuries" the record states, including
"substantial bruises, multiple bites to her body" and a 3-inch
laceration to her forearm requiring stitches.

The infant had bite marks on her cheek, neck and shoulder, police said.

Bond was set $50,000, and a judge requested Pye undergo a mental evaluation.

Pye's arrest record includes minor drug offenses but no crimes of violence.

An eastern New Orleans woman was acquitted of manslaughter Wednesday in the stabbing death of her husband on Halloween 2012.

Robin Washington sobbed after Orleans Parish Criminal District Court
Judge Ben Willard issued his verdict, sparing her a possible 40-year
prison sentence. The ruling came five days after the conclusion of
testimony in the four-day trial, which pitted prosecutors against police
and Washington against her stepdaughter, the only witness to the fatal
stabbing of Bernard Washington, 38.

"She's not happy," defense attorney Jerry Settle said of his client.
"At the end of the day, she lost a husband. But she is relieved that in
this instance, the system delivered a just verdict."

The dead man's family strongly disagreed.

"She's not a grieving widow," said Byron Washington, the dead man's brother. "She's a black widow."

Robin Washington elected not to tell her story from the witness stand
in the trial that was held before a judge only, not a jury. But Settle
portrayed her as a long-suffering victim of spousal abuse who lashed out
in fear for her life after her husband pulled her hair, punched her and
choked her unconscious during a violent morning fight.

Outside the courtroom last week, Robin Washington told a NOLA.com |
The Times-Picayune reporter that her husband "was drunk and he was
beating on me, and abusing me. If I hadn't done what I did, who knows?
Maybe I wouldn't be here today.

Packer, the former homicide detective, called Allen a liar who embellished her story after pressure from her father's family.

In explaining his ruling, Willard said he also heard portions of
Allen's recorded statements to police that he considered inconsistent
with evidence visible in photographs from the crime scene. He noted
Allen described a downward stabbing motion that inflicted the fatal
wound, but photographs of Bernard Washington's leg showed an incision
that appeared lateral, not vertical. The judge also discounted Allen's
testimony that Robin Washington had attempted to mop up blood with a
towel under her foot, because he said he did not see a blood-soaked
towel in photos from the house.

But the crux of Willard's ruling seemed to be that he believed
Bernard Washington employed deadly force when he applied a headlock that
choked his wife temporarily unconscious during their fight.

Willard cited Louisiana's law on justifiable homicide
that reads: "No finder of fact shall be permitted to consider the
possibility of retreat as a factor in determining whether or not the
person who used deadly force had a reasonable belief that deadly force
was reasonable and apparently necessary to prevent a violent or forcible
felony involving life or great bodily harm or to prevent unlawful
entry."

Robin Washington sat quietly with supporters inside the lobby of her
attorney's office 30 minutes after her acquittal but declined comment.

"This was a hard case for both sides," Settle said. "It's been hard
on my client, that's why there's no celebration here. This case was
legally complicated, but we just thank god the system, for once, worked
the way it should have."

Assistant District Attorneys Bobby Freeman and Donald Cassels used physical evidence in an effort to support Allen's story.

During a combative five-hour cross-examination during the trial,
prosecutors got Packer to concede that Robin Washington displayed no
visible injuries during interviews with police in the immediate hours
and first three days after the incident.

They pointed out the wife initially lied about whether she had
consumed alcohol in the hours before the fight. And they presented
evidence test results showing her husband was not drunk as she alleged, but died with a blood-alcohol content of 0.05 percent, within the legal limit to drive.

Finally, Freeman painstakingly forced the detective to write the
words "No blood" on nearly a dozen crime-scene photos from the family's
home, hammering home that there was no visible blood evidence in the
area where Robin Washington said the stabbing occurred, but plenty near
the front door where Allen said her father was wounded while trying to
escape.

Prosecutors accused Robin Washington of planning to kill her husband
days in advance. They asked Packer to read details from his own report
that indicated she had been rebuffed in her attempt to establish a
three-way sexual relationship involving her husband and a Central City
woman with whom she caught him having an extramarital affair. When the
other woman declined, prosecutors said, Robin Washington became
increasingly angry and resentful.

Bernard Washington may not have been an ideal husband, Cassels said
in his closing argument, but he did not deserve to die because of his
wife's jealous rage.

Prosecutors also slipped in mention of multiple life insurance
policies, hinting at a possible financial motive from which Robin
Washington might benefit. They did not pursue that angle, even though
the dead man's family members did outside the courtroom.

"She is calculating, conniving, treacherous and heartless," said
Byron Washington, Bernard's brother. "She did exactly what she planned."

He added that Robin Washington, who has prior arrests for drug
possession and theft, took advantage of the final fight in the couple's
turbulent relationship to kill her husband in hopes of cashing in on
four life insurance policies.

Based upon Packer's initial report, the NOPD ruled within one day
that the case was a justifiable homicide. Nearly five months elapsed
before the office of Orleans Parish District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro filed the manslaughter charge.

The trial played out against the backdrop of recent public conflict between Cannizzaro and Willard.

The judge handed prosecutors a high-profile defeat last December when
he acquitted Jamal Kendrick, an NOPD officer charged with malfeasance
for hitting a handcuffed suspect. The trial featured a dashboard video
of the officer appearing to strike the civilian while saying, "Not in my f---ing district."

Cannizzaro took to the airwaves of WBOK-AM a week later, criticizing
Willard's decision in that case on an afternoon talk show. In a highly
unusual move, the judge called in to defend his decision live on the
air, and even went to the radio station's front door asking to be let
in. He was not admitted into the studio and the hosts eventually cut off
his call, The Advocate reported.

After Wednesday's verdict, Cannizzaro issued a statement through
Assistant District Attorney Christopher Bowman, saying, "With respect to
the verdict, we are certainly disappointed but, unfortunately, not
surprised.

"When violent crime goes unpunished, the entire community, more than
any single person, is the victim. While Bernard Washington's family
mourns his loss, the entire city should be aggrieved by the outcome."

Reserve man shoots at woman while both driving on Airline Highway, authorities report

A Reserve
man was in jail Thursday because authorities say he beat up a woman
then fired a gun into her vehicle as they were both driving on Airline
Highway in Garyville. The
woman told investigators that Cordan Duhe, 23, pulled alongside her
sport utility vehicle, rolled down the passenger side window of his car
and fired once as they were driving Monday near the Marathon Petroleum
Corp. refinery.

The bullet struck the rear driver's side door of her vehicle. The
woman reported the incident to the St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff's Office
and identified the man as Duhe. She told authorities that she and Duhe
had been fighting in St. James Parish and that she was driving home when
he followed and shot into her vehicle.

Duhe was booked with aggravated assault, aggravated criminal damage
to property and illegal use of a gun. He also was booked on two warrants
and with being a fugitive from St. James Parish.

Authorities say Duhe is on probation with the state Department of Corrections. His bond is set at $150,450.

*An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported that
Cordan Duhe was in a relationship with the woman he is accused of
shooting at as they drove on Airline Highway in Garyville on Monday. St.
John the Baptist investigators say Duhe and the woman were at a
function in St. James Parish when she got into a fight with a female
friend of Duhe's. The victim said Duhe intervened in the fight and when
she left, he followed her and then shot into her car.

Georgia cop shot in back, killed at Waffle House after suspects used racial slurs, brother says

GRIFFIN, Ga. -- A 43-year-old Griffin police officer was shot and killed
while off-duty early Saturday morning and the man who police say fired
the gun is in critical but stable condition after being shot by the
officer's brother.

Officer Kevin Jordan was working an overnight security shift in
uniform at a Waffle House restaurant in Griffin when two men and a woman
caused a disturbance around 2:30 a.m., Griffin Police Lt. Mike
Richardson said. Jordan escorted them to the parking lot, when the woman
identified as Chantell Mixon began physically fighting with him.

Jordan was attempting to arrest Mixon when one of the men, Michael
Bowman, fired at the officer's back, Richardson said. Police believe
Jordan was shot five times. At least one bullet penetrated the
bulletproof vest Jordan was wearing, Richardson said.

Jordan's brother, Raymond Jordan, had come to the restaurant to visit
and fired his weapon, striking Bowman, Richardson said. Raymond Jordan
has a valid permit in Georgia, he said. It is not known how many times
Bowman was hit or whether he has an attorney.

He claimed Bowman, Mixon and Taylor used racial slurs and acted
disrespectfully toward his brother, a former Marine who had been an
officer with the Griffin Police Department for four years.

Richardson said police plan to file felony murder charges against
Bowman and Mixon. A charge of felony obstruction also is planned against
Mixon. The second man present at the time of the shooting, Tyler
Taylor, is expected to be charged with disorderly conduct.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation has taken over the investigation.

Jordan leaves behind seven children and was with the Griffin Police
Department for four years. Richardson said the department is deeply
saddened by his death.

"We request that you keep the Jordan family in your prayers and
thoughts as well as our local law enforcement community," Richardson
said. "Officer Jordan will be greatly missed."

New Orleans man used stun gun on boss after being fired, cops say

Kenner Police arrested a New Orleans man accused of using a stun gun on his boss after being fired, according to authorities.

Benjamin Boyce, 25, was booked with aggravated battery following the
scuffle, which occurred Friday (May 30), said Sgt. Brian McGregor,
spokesman for the Kenner Police.

Boyce had worked for about two months as a salesman for local company
that sells steaks door-to-door. But Boyce also had a sideline selling
civilian-grade stun guns to customers, according to McGregor.

Police said Boyce's 46-year-old boss, who was not identified, found
out about the side-business and confronted him. "The victim advised he
had prior problems with Boyce selling stun guns when he was supposed to
be selling steaks," McGregor said.

Boyce agreed to stick to peddling meat during company hours. But the
boss caught Boyce making an on-the-clock stun gun sale Friday afternoon
in the parking lot of a service station in the 2100 block of Veterans
Memorial Boulevard in Kenner, McGregor said.

Fed up, the boss fired Boyce on the spot and requested the keys to
the company vehicle he had been driving. Boyce refused, McGregor said,
prompting the boss to remove them from the car's ignition.

Boyce is accused of grabbing the boss by the arm and snatching back
the keys, according to McGregor. The two began to fight and, according
to police, Boyce took out one of the stun guns and shocked his boss on
the neck. The boss eventually broke free and called police.

Police said Boyce told officers he stunned his boss in self-defense
after the boss grabbed the keys from his hand, leading to the fight. But
a witness backed the boss' version of events, McGregor said.

Boyce, of 617 Soraparu St., New Orleans, was booked into the
Jefferson Parish Correctional Center in Gretna on May 31. He was still
being held there Monday (June 2) on a $10,000 bond.

DETROIT (AP) — A Detroit-area man was so determined to get to
Michigan from Arizona that he refused to stop and contact authorities
after one of his passengers died, police said Wednesday.

The man, a
62-year-old Clinton Township resident, has not been charged and
authorities were awaiting toxicology results from an autopsy performed
on the body of the 31-year-old woman who died.

Police said the man
and his 92-year-old mother spend their winters in Arizona and were
returning to Michigan with a 31-year-old woman with whom the man said he
had had a romantic relationship. When officers arrived Tuesday at his
son's home in Warren, just north of Detroit, the man was weeping on the
curb and his mother was in her wheelchair in the back of the van. The
dead woman's corpse was in the front passenger seat wearing a seatbelt
and sunglasses.

"She obviously had been dead for at least 24 hours in screeching heat," said Warren Police Commissioner Jere Green.

Police did not release the names of the man or the dead woman.

Their
1,700 mile journey began Sunday in the Phoenix area after the woman
checked herself out of a mental health facility there. At some point the
woman, who had a history of substance abuse problems, may have taken
oxycodone, Green said.

"They stopped in Flagstaff and she went in to use the bathroom," Green said. "We're guessing she might have overdosed."

Green
said the driver later tried to wake her but discovered her body was
cold and presumed that she had died. He did an Internet search on his
cellphone and later told police he read something about having 48 hours
to take a corpse to a medical examiner or morgue.

As their macabre
journey continued, someone at the mental health facility in Arizona
called the woman's cellphone to check on her.

New Orleans man charged with killing Marrero soldier

A New Orleans man was indicted by a Jefferson Parish grand jury Thursday in the New Year's Day shooting death of Army Staff Sgt. Joseph Anderson, a soldier who survived served three tours in the Middle East only to be killed while home on holiday leave. Darwin "Trent" Bethune, 24, of 4466 Rosemont Drive is charged with second-degree murder, accused of killing the 31-year-old Anderson during a carjacking.

Anderson was shot in the face just after he dropped off his three children at the home of his ex-wife's parents in the 6100 block of Ray Street. The children were ages 7, 11 and 12.

Born and raised in Marrero, Anderson was hours away from returning to
his post at Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., his family
told NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune in January. A passer-by found his
body in front of the home.

His mother's sport utility vehicle had been taken. Deputies soon
found it on Rue Louis St. Phillipe in Marrero, about two miles from
where he was killed.

About a month later, Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office detectives
announced that Bethune was their suspect. He turned himself in to
deputies in New Orleans days later.

Until Thursday, he was held in the Jefferson Parish Correctional
Center in Gretna in lieu of a $500,000 bond. But Assistant District
Attorney Tommy Block asked that it be increased to $2 million. Calling
Bethune "a flight risk," Block said the defendant "actively obtained a
passport in an attempt to further efforts to leave the country." Judge
June Darensburg of the 24th Judicial District Court increased the bond.

If convicted as charged of second-degree murder, Bethune would spend
the rest of his life in prison with no chance of probation, parole or
suspended sentence. He already was charged in Jefferson Parish with
unauthorized entry into an inhabited dwelling, court records show.
Prosecutors filed that charge May 23, alleging that on Jan. 6, a week
after Anderson was killed, Bethune went into his ex-girlfriend's home in
Harvey's Woodmere subdivision without permission.

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